KOZHIKODE: Sixty-six-year old M V Devi started as a midday meal worker at ALP School, Kakkur, in the district 35 years ago when `5 was her daily wage. She is now getting Rs 500 a day. Of that, she has to give Rs 200 to her helper, who has been hired by Devi herself due to the workload. Over 13,000 midday meal workers in the state like her, mostly women and elderly, who have already been at the receiving end because of the heavy workload and meagre wage, are now at a breaking point, thanks to the Covid-19 pandemic.
“We had no work on Saturdays, Sundays and other holidays and no wage. We used to get `2,000 as a relief aid during summer vacation. This time, it has not been disbursed. We have no idea when the school will reopen this year,” laments Devi.
Most of the midday meal workers are the sole breadwinners of their families and the uncertainty over the school reopening has pushed them to the edge. “Earlier, there were only meals and green gram to serve. Now, porridge, egg and milk have been added to the menu, besides two curries and a side dish for each student along with meals. The workload has increased manifold but not the wage,” says Devi. One midday meal worker is allowed for 500 students. The state government had announced a `50 hike in their daily wage in 2017 but they started getting it only last year. “If those pending arrears are distributed now, it would have been of great help,” says Devi, who has a sick husband to take care of.
Fifty-four-year-old T P Aishabi, the midday meal worker at MLP School, Kuttikattoor, also faces a similar plight. A widow, she has seven members at home depending on her income. “My son had just got a job as a collection agent in a bank. He hasn’t started getting salary. My family is dependent solely on my income,” she says.
This is Aishabi’s 31st year as a midday meal worker and she too has a helper at work. “One alone cannot do this physical work. We reach the school before 8am and leaves by 3pm. We are out of social service, pension and other welfare schemes of the government,” she says.
According to T K Balagopalan, state committee member of the School Pachaka Thozhilali Sanghatana, there are 13,000 government-approved midday meal workers in the state. Of them, 92 per cent are women. “If we include the helpers, the number will be close to 20,000. Most of us are above 45.”According to him, more than 100 midday meal workers have suffered serious burns or injuries while on duty. “Besides clearing the arrears, we demand a higher minimum wage, ESI and PFI benefits,” he said.